US20080057354A1 - Information Handling System Including Battery Assembly Having Multiple Separable Subassemblies - Google Patents
Information Handling System Including Battery Assembly Having Multiple Separable Subassemblies Download PDFInfo
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- US20080057354A1 US20080057354A1 US11/934,193 US93419307A US2008057354A1 US 20080057354 A1 US20080057354 A1 US 20080057354A1 US 93419307 A US93419307 A US 93419307A US 2008057354 A1 US2008057354 A1 US 2008057354A1
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- United States
- Prior art keywords
- battery
- subassembly
- powered device
- subassemblies
- assembly
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01M—PROCESSES OR MEANS, e.g. BATTERIES, FOR THE DIRECT CONVERSION OF CHEMICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY
- H01M16/00—Structural combinations of different types of electrochemical generators
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- G—PHYSICS
- G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
- G06Q—INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- G06Q10/00—Administration; Management
- G06Q10/08—Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
- G06Q10/083—Shipping
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01M—PROCESSES OR MEANS, e.g. BATTERIES, FOR THE DIRECT CONVERSION OF CHEMICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY
- H01M50/00—Constructional details or processes of manufacture of the non-active parts of electrochemical cells other than fuel cells, e.g. hybrid cells
- H01M50/20—Mountings; Secondary casings or frames; Racks, modules or packs; Suspension devices; Shock absorbers; Transport or carrying devices; Holders
- H01M50/204—Racks, modules or packs for multiple batteries or multiple cells
- H01M50/207—Racks, modules or packs for multiple batteries or multiple cells characterised by their shape
- H01M50/213—Racks, modules or packs for multiple batteries or multiple cells characterised by their shape adapted for cells having curved cross-section, e.g. round or elliptic
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01M—PROCESSES OR MEANS, e.g. BATTERIES, FOR THE DIRECT CONVERSION OF CHEMICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY
- H01M50/00—Constructional details or processes of manufacture of the non-active parts of electrochemical cells other than fuel cells, e.g. hybrid cells
- H01M50/20—Mountings; Secondary casings or frames; Racks, modules or packs; Suspension devices; Shock absorbers; Transport or carrying devices; Holders
- H01M50/256—Carrying devices, e.g. belts
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01M—PROCESSES OR MEANS, e.g. BATTERIES, FOR THE DIRECT CONVERSION OF CHEMICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY
- H01M10/00—Secondary cells; Manufacture thereof
- H01M10/05—Accumulators with non-aqueous electrolyte
- H01M10/052—Li-accumulators
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01M—PROCESSES OR MEANS, e.g. BATTERIES, FOR THE DIRECT CONVERSION OF CHEMICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY
- H01M10/00—Secondary cells; Manufacture thereof
- H01M10/34—Gastight accumulators
- H01M10/345—Gastight metal hydride accumulators
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01M—PROCESSES OR MEANS, e.g. BATTERIES, FOR THE DIRECT CONVERSION OF CHEMICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY
- H01M6/00—Primary cells; Manufacture thereof
- H01M6/42—Grouping of primary cells into batteries
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01M—PROCESSES OR MEANS, e.g. BATTERIES, FOR THE DIRECT CONVERSION OF CHEMICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY
- H01M6/00—Primary cells; Manufacture thereof
- H01M6/50—Methods or arrangements for servicing or maintenance, e.g. for maintaining operating temperature
- H01M6/5011—Methods or arrangements for servicing or maintenance, e.g. for maintaining operating temperature for several cells simultaneously or successively
- H01M6/5016—Multimode utilisation
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- Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
- Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
- Y02E—REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
- Y02E60/00—Enabling technologies; Technologies with a potential or indirect contribution to GHG emissions mitigation
- Y02E60/10—Energy storage using batteries
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- Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
- Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
- Y02P—CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROCESSING OF GOODS
- Y02P70/00—Climate change mitigation technologies in the production process for final industrial or consumer products
- Y02P70/50—Manufacturing or production processes characterised by the final manufactured product
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- Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
- Y10—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC
- Y10T—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER US CLASSIFICATION
- Y10T29/00—Metal working
- Y10T29/49—Method of mechanical manufacture
- Y10T29/49002—Electrical device making
- Y10T29/49108—Electric battery cell making
Abstract
A battery powered device is provided which includes a chassis, a battery bay defined by the chassis, and a battery assembly. The battery assembly is located in the battery bay and operable to provide power to the battery powered device. The battery assembly includes a plurality of battery subassemblies. The plurality of battery subassemblies are operable to be mechanically and electrically connected together to form the battery assembly. The battery subassemblies are provided to be shipped such that an additional shipping fee that would be incurred due to a chemical mass in the battery assembly is avoided. The plurality of battery subassemblies includes a first battery subassembly and a second battery subassembly. The first battery subassembly includes a first subassembly to subassembly electrical connector, a first subassembly to subassembly mechanical connector, and a device power connector operable to supply power to the battery powered device. The second battery subassembly is electrically and mechanically connected to the first battery subassembly and includes a second subassembly to subassembly electrical connector electrically connected to the first subassembly to subassembly electrical connector of the first battery subassembly and a second subassembly to subassembly mechanical connector mechanically connected to the first subassembly to subassembly mechanical connector of the first battery subassembly.
Description
- This application claims priority to and is a divisional of co-owned co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/721,450 (Attorney Docket No. 16356.827) filed Nov. 25, 2003 and is related to co-owned co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______, (Attorney Docket No. 16356.1062) filed ______ and co-owned and co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No. 16356.1063) filed ______, all incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
- The disclosures herein relate generally to information handling systems and more particularly to battery assemblies which can be used in such systems and other devices requiring portable electrical power.
- As the value and use of information continue to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system (IHS) generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, IHSs may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in IHSs allow for IHSs to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, IHSs may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
- Portable battery-powered IHSs continue to progress with ever increasing information handling capabilities. However, concurrent with this performance increase, the amount of power which portable IHSs draw from their power supply systems continues to increase as well. Batteries are called upon to produce higher amounts of electrical energy with each new portable IHS generation. New regulatory requirements have dramatically increased the shipping charges for batteries which exceed certain thresholds, for example a power capacity of more than approximately 98 watt hours or a lithium content of more than 8 grams for lithium ion battery chemistry. Because batteries with capacities in excess of 98 watt hours are now needed to power today's high performance portable IHSs, the fees paid for shipping batteries are increasing substantially.
- It would be desirable to provide for packaging batteries in a manner which results in more cost effective shipping for batteries with high watt hour ratings.
- Accordingly, in one embodiment, a battery powered device is disclosed. The battery powered device includes a chassis, a battery bay defined by the chassis, and a battery assembly. The battery assembly is located in the battery bay and operable to provide power to the battery powered device. The battery assembly includes a plurality of battery subassemblies. The plurality of battery subassemblies are operable to be mechanically and electrically connected together to form the battery assembly. The battery subassemblies are provided to be shipped such that an additional shipping fee that would be incurred due to a chemical mass in the battery assembly is avoided. The plurality of battery subassemblies includes a first battery subassembly and a second battery subassembly. The first battery subassembly includes a first subassembly to subassembly electrical connector, a first subassembly to subassembly mechanical connector, and a device power connector operable to supply power to the battery powered device. The second battery subassembly is electrically and mechanically connected to the first battery subassembly and includes a second subassembly to subassembly electrical connector electrically connected to the first subassembly to subassembly electrical connector of the first battery subassembly and a second subassembly to subassembly mechanical connector mechanically connected to the first subassembly to subassembly mechanical connector of the first battery subassembly.
- A principal advantage of the embodiments disclosed herein is that battery subassemblies can be shipped at significantly lower cost than batteries which exceed certain regulatory thresholds.
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FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an embodiment of the disclosed battery assembly. -
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the upper battery subassembly of the battery assembly ofFIG. 1 . -
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the lower battery subassembly of the battery assembly ofFIG. 1 . -
FIG. 4A-4F show several views illustrating an embodiment of the disclosed battery assembly. -
FIGS. 5A and 5B are perspective views illustrating an embodiment of the battery assembly in open and partially closed positions, respectively. -
FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating an embodiment of a portable IHS showing a bay for receiving a battery assembly. -
FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating an embodiment of the an IHS using the disclosed battery technology. -
FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment steps taken to fabricate and ship the battery subassemblies and assemble the completed battery assembly. -
FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of abattery 100 which can be used to supply power to an IHS or other electrical devices. For purposes of this disclosure, an IHS may include any instrumentality or aggregate of instrumentalities operable to compute, classify, process, transmit, receive, retrieve, originate, switch, store, display, manifest, detect, record, reproduce, handle, or utilize any form of information, intelligence, or data for business, scientific, control, or other purposes. For example, an IHS may be a personal computer, a network storage device, or any other suitable device and may vary in size, shape, performance, functionality, and price. The IHS may include random access memory (RAM), one or more processing resources such as a central processing unit (CPU) or hardware or software control logic, ROM, and/or other types of nonvolatile memory. Additional components of the IHS may include one or more disk drives, one or more network ports for communicating with external devices as well as various input and output (I/O) devices, such as a keyboard, a mouse, and a video display. The IHS may also include one or more buses operable to transmit communications between the various hardware components. - In one embodiment,
battery assembly 100 is formed from 2 or more battery subassemblies. In this manner, the power capacity of each battery subassembly can be made to be less than the threshold power capacity or threshold chemical mass at which increased shipping rates begin to apply. For example, inFIG. 1 battery assembly 100 includes anupper battery sub-assembly 200 which mechanically mates and electrically connects with alower battery subassembly 300. A perspective view ofupper battery subassembly 200 is shown inFIG. 2 and a perspective view oflower battery subassembly 300 is shown inFIG. 3 . -
FIG. 4A is a top plan view ofbattery assembly 100 showing thetop 105 ofupper battery subassembly 200. Theleft side 110 ofbattery assembly 100 is shown inFIG. 4B while thefront side 115 andrear side 120 ofbattery assembly 100 are shown inFIGS. 4C and 4D respectively. To more clearly illustrate how battery subassemblies 200 and 300 fit together, cross sections are taken ofbattery assembly 100 alongsection lines 4E-4E and 4F-4F.FIG. 4E shows a cross section ofbattery assembly 100 taken alongsection line 4E-4E andFIG. 4F shows a cross section ofbattery assembly 100 taken alongsection line 4F-4F. - As seen in the cross sections of
FIGS. 4E and 4F ,upper battery subassembly 200 includes 8cells 205 andlower battery subassembly 300 includes 8cells 305. In this particular embodiment, the cells ofupper battery subassembly 200 are electrically coupled together in series such that the voltage of the cells is cumulative. When lithium ion chemistry is used for the 8cells 205 inupper battery subassembly 305 the cumulative voltage is approximately 33.6 volts. In this particular embodiment, the cells oflower battery subassembly 300 are also electrically coupled together in series such that the cumulative voltage of the cells is 33.6 volts. Whenupper battery subassembly 200 is mechanically mated withlower battery subassembly 300, the connection is made in parallel such that the voltage of the combined assembly is still 33.6 volts. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that internal tosubassemblies upper battery subassembly 200 is connected in parallel withlower battery subassembly 300, other embodiments are possible wherein these structures are connected in series. - In more detail,
upper battery subassembly 200 includeschambers chamber 210 exhibits a first size which accommodates 3 cells andchamber 215 exhibits a second size which is larger thanchamber 210 and which accommodates 5 cells therein. Other embodiments are possible wherein the chambers are configured to enclose a greater or lesser number of cells. Immediately belowbattery subassembly 200,lower battery subassembly 300 includeschambers chambers Chambers - As mentioned earlier,
upper battery subassembly 200 and lower battery subassembly are both mechanically and electrically connected together. The two subassemblies are mechanically connected together as follows.Upper battery subassembly 200 includes alower surface 220 which mates with theupper surface 320 oflower battery assembly 300 as seen in the side view ofFIG. 4B . Whatever geometric pattern selected forlower surface 220, the inverse pattern is selected forupper surface 320 so that one mates with the other. In the particular embodiment ofFIG. 4B whereinlower surface 220 exhibits 3valleys 225 it is seen thatupper surface 320 exhibits 3peaks 325. The peaks mate with the valleys and help holdupper battery subassembly 200 andlower battery subassembly 200 laterally in position with respect to one another. -
Lower battery subassembly 300 includesrecesses 330, seen inFIG. 3 and later inFIG. 5A-5B , into which correspondingprotrusions 230 ofupper battery subassembly 200 fit. Onceupper battery subassembly 200 is mated withlower battery subassembly 300,screws 235 seen inFIG. 4A are threaded through threadedholes 237 inupper battery subassembly 200 and through corresponding respective threadedholes 337 seen inFIG. 3 inlower battery assembly 300 therebelow. This screw arrangement, together with the above describedmating valleys 225 andpeaks 325, and together with themating protrusions 230 and recesses 330, firmly holdsupper battery subassembly 200 tolower battery subassembly 300 together to form a unitary battery module.Lower battery assembly 300 also includeslatches 340 to help holdbattery assembly 100 together inside a battery powered device. -
FIG. 5A is a perspective view ofbattery assembly 100 showingbattery subassemblies FIG. 5B is a perspective view ofbattery assembly 100 showingbattery subassemblies protrusions 230 ofupper battery subassembly 200 are situated inrecesses 330 oflower battery subassembly 300 as shown inFIG. 5B theprotrusion 230—recess 330 pairs form respective hinges about whichupper battery subassembly 200 andlower battery subassembly 300 rotate while the are mated with one another to from completedbattery assembly 100. - While the mechanical connection of
upper battery subassembly 200 tolower battery subassembly 300 has been described above, the electrical connection of these two subassemblies together is now described. As seen inFIGS. 5A and 5B ,upper battery subassembly 200 includes abattery connector 505 which mates and electrically connects with abattery connector 510 onlower battery subassembly 300. The cells ofupper battery subassembly 200 are connected in parallel with the cells oflower battery subassembly 300 in this particular embodiment. Other embodiments are contemplated wherein the cells are connected in series as desired for the particular application.Lower battery subassembly 300 includesmain power connector 350 as seen inFIGS. 5A and 5B .Main power connector 350 is used to connect the completedbattery assembly 100 to other devices such as IHSs and other power consuming devices.Main power connector 350 includes multiple contacts such as positive, negative, ground as well as control signal contacts for a battery management unit (not shown) which may be situated in either of, or both of,upper battery subassembly 200 andlower battery subassembly 300. It is also possible to locatemain power connector 350 inupper battery subassembly 200 if desired. - In one embodiment, after
battery subassemblies battery assembly 100,battery assembly 100 is placed in a battery chamber orbattery bay 605 formed in thehousing 610 of an battery powereddevice 600 such as a notebook computer type IHS, for example, as shown inFIG. 6 .Battery bay 605 includes anelectrical connector 615, as seen inFIG. 6 , which mates with mainelectrical connector 350 oflower battery subassembly 300 seen inFIG. 3 . -
FIG. 7 is a representation of an electricalpower consuming device 600 to whichbattery assembly 100 can be connected to supply power thereto. In this particular embodiment, electricalpower consuming device 600 is an IHS such as a laptop or notebook computer. However, virtually any power consuming device can be adapted to receive power frombattery assembly 100. Power consuming devices such as battery powered appliances, consumer electronics goods, electric cars, and toys are just a few examples of battery powered devices in whichbattery assembly 100 can be employed. - In more detail,
FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a portable or notebook IHS system such as a notebook, laptop, PDA or other portable, battery-powered system.IHS 600 includes aprocessor 705 such as an Intel Pentium series processor or one of many other processors currently available. An Intel Hub Architecture (IHA)chipset 710 providesIHS 600 with glue-logic that connectsprocessor 705 to other components ofIHS 600.Chipset 710 carries out graphics/memory controller hub functions and I/O functions. More specifically,chipset 710 acts as a host controller which communicates with agraphics controller 715 coupled thereto.Graphics controller 715 is coupled to adisplay 720.Chipset 710 also acts as a controller formain memory 725 which is coupled thereto.Chipset 710 further acts as an I/O controller hub (ICH) which performs I/O functions.Input devices 730 such as a mouse, keyboard, and tablet, are also coupled tochipset 710 at the option of the user. Anexpansion bus 735, such as a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus, PCI Express bus, SATA bus or other bus is coupled tochipset 710 as shown to enableIHS 600 to be connected to other devices which provideIHS 600 with additional functionality. A universal serial bus (USB) 740 or other I/O bus is coupled tochipset 710 to facilitate the connection of peripheral devices toIHS 600. System basic input-output system (BIOS) 745 is coupled tochipset 710 as shown.BIOS software 745 is stored in nonvolatile memory such as CMOS or FLASH memory. A network interface controller (NIC) 750 is coupled tochipset 710 to facilitate connection ofsystem 600 to other IHSs. A media drive controller 755 is coupled tochipset 710 so that devices such as media drive 760 can be connected tochipset 710 andprocessor 705. Devices that can be coupled to media drive controller 755 include CD-ROM drives, DVD drives, hard disk drives and other fixed or removable media drives.IHS 600 includes an operating system which is stored onmedia drive 760. Typical operating systems which can be stored on media drive 760 include Microsoft Windows XP, Microsoft Windows 2000 and the Linux operating systems. (Microsoft and Windows are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.) -
IHS 600 includes a power management controller (PMC) 765 which is coupled tochipset 710 as shown.PMC 765 controls power supply functions withinIHS 600 under the direction of control software stored innonvolatile FLASH memory 770. One output ofPMC 765 is a system management bus (SMBUS) 775 which is coupled to DCpower regulation circuit 780.Battery assembly 100, includingupper battery 200 andlower battery subassembly 300 are connected viaelectrical connectors power regulation circuit 780 includes anoutput 785 which provides the main DC regulation power for the components ofIHS 600 or other electrical power consuming device. -
FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating the building process for a battery powered device utilizingbattery assembly 100. Prior to shipment of abattery 100, the battery is portioned into 2 or more subassemblies which can be later mechanically and electrically connected to one another after shipping. In one embodiment, upper and lower battery subassemblies are fabricated as perblock 805. In one embodiment, each battery subassembly exhibits a power rating, chemical weight or other factor which is less than a threshold amount needed to trigger increased shipping cost due to regulations or shipping liability concerns. When a battery exhibits a characteristic which exceeds a regulatory or other threshold the cost of shipping goes up. This characteristic could be the watt hour rating, the weight of a chemical element or other battery characteristic. Other embodiments using more than two battery subassemblies are possible as long as the battery subassemblies mechanically mate with one another and electrically connect to one another. The unmated upper and lower battery subassemblies are placed in a shipping container as perblock 810. Each battery is then shipped at a fee per battery subassembly which is less then the increased fee encountered by batteries which exceed the regulatory threshold or other threshold as perblock 815. A battery powered device, such as a notebook IHS for example, is then fabricated to include a battery receiving bay or chamber as perblock 820. The IHS and the still separate upper and lower battery subassemblies are placed in a shipping package as perblock 825. The package is then sent to the customer or reseller and the appropriate shipping fee is paid as perblock 830. The shipping fee is at the reduced rate for smaller batteries that do not trigger the threshold for increased shipping fees. When the customer, reseller or other person receives the package, the customer, reseller or other person mechanically and electrically connects the upper and lower battery assemblies to form a complete battery assembly as perblock 835. The complete battery is then placed in the battery bay of the IHS device as perblock 840. The complete battery assembly is mechanically and electrically connected to the IHS device to provide power thereto. In one embodiment, an IHS configuration facility or reseller or other entity may connect the upper and lower battery assemblies to complete the battery assembly and then place the battery assembly in the battery bay of an electrically powered device. In this embodiment, the customer would pick up the completed electrically powered device from the configuration facility, the reseller or other entity. - It is noted that an IHS is just one example of a battery powered device to which the disclosed technology applies. The disclosed technology can be applied to fabricate and ship a battery which can be used in virtually any battery powered device. In one embodiment, the chemistry of the individual battery subassemblies is the same. For example, the upper battery subassembly and the lower battery subassembly each employ nickel metal hydride chemistry. Alternatively, both subassemblies employ lithium ion or nickel cadmium chemistry or other battery chemistries. In another embodiment the battery subassemblies employ different chemistries. For example, one battery subassembly employs lithium ion chemistry and the other mating battery subassembly employs nickel metal hydride chemistry. In this embodiment, the lithium ion battery subassembly includes a battery management unit, safety controls and housing appropriate for lithium ion chemistry and the nickel metal hydride battery subassembly includes a battery management unit, safety controls and housing appropriate for nickel metal hydride chemistry.
- Advantageously, the disclosed technology allows a customer to upgrade the battery used in the customer's battery powered device. Initially the customer can purchase just one battery subassembly to power the device. Later the customer can, at his or her convenience, purchase a second battery subassembly. The customer then mates the first battery subassembly with the second battery subassembly to form a battery which exhibits increased power and energy capacity.
- The disclosed technology advantageously partitions a battery into multiple battery subassemblies resulting in substantial savings when batteries are shipped from place to place. The terms “upper” and “lower” as applied to
upper battery subassembly 200 andlower battery subassembly 300 are used for convenience and are not intended to limit the battery subassemblies to these particular orientations. Likewise, terms such as top, bottom, front and rear are also used for convenience and are not intended to limit elements ofbattery assembly 100 to a particular orientation. - Although illustrative embodiments have been shown and described, a wide range of modification, change and substitution is contemplated in the foregoing disclosure and in some instances, some features of an embodiment may be employed without a corresponding use of other features. Accordingly, it is appropriate that the appended claims be construed broadly and in manner consistent with the scope of the embodiments disclosed herein.
Claims (6)
1. A battery powered device, comprising:
a chassis;
a battery bay defined by the chassis; and
a battery assembly located in the battery bay and operable to provide power to the battery powered device, the battery assembly comprising a plurality of battery subassemblies that are operable to be mechanically and electrically connected together to form the battery assembly, wherein the battery subassemblies are provided to be shipped such that an additional shipping fee that would be incurred due to a chemical mass in the battery assembly is avoided, the plurality of battery subassemblies comprising:
a first battery subassembly comprising a first subassembly to subassembly electrical connector, a first subassembly to subassembly mechanical connector, and a device power connector operable to supply power to the battery powered device; and
a second battery subassembly electrically and mechanically connected to the first battery subassembly, the second battery subassembly comprising a second subassembly to subassembly electrical connector electrically connected to the first subassembly to subassembly electrical connector of the first battery subassembly and a second subassembly to subassembly mechanical connector mechanically connected to the first subassembly to subassembly mechanical connector of the first battery subassembly.
2. The battery powered device of claim 1 , wherein the first battery subassembly exhibits a first cell chemistry and the second battery subassembly exhibits a second cell chemistry, wherein the first cell chemistry is different from the second cell chemistry.
3. The battery powered device of claim 1 , wherein the chemical mass in the battery assembly comprises a lithium ion chemical mass.
4. The battery powered device of claim 1 , wherein the chemical mass in the battery assembly comprises a nickel metal hydride chemical mass.
5. The battery powered device of claim 1 , wherein the battery powered device comprises an information handling system (IHS).
6. The battery powered device of claim 5 , whereby the IHS further comprises:
a processor located in the chassis; and
a memory located in the chassis and coupled to the processor.
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US11/934,193 US20080057354A1 (en) | 2003-11-25 | 2007-11-02 | Information Handling System Including Battery Assembly Having Multiple Separable Subassemblies |
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
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US10/721,450 US20050112457A1 (en) | 2003-11-25 | 2003-11-25 | Information handling system including battery assembly having multiple separable subassemblies |
US11/934,193 US20080057354A1 (en) | 2003-11-25 | 2007-11-02 | Information Handling System Including Battery Assembly Having Multiple Separable Subassemblies |
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US10/721,450 Division US20050112457A1 (en) | 2003-11-25 | 2003-11-25 | Information handling system including battery assembly having multiple separable subassemblies |
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US11/627,782 Active 2027-02-12 US7962420B2 (en) | 2003-11-25 | 2007-01-26 | Information handling system including battery assembly having multiple separable subassemblies |
US11/934,137 Abandoned US20080052899A1 (en) | 2003-11-25 | 2007-11-02 | Information Handling System Including Battery Assembly Having Multiple Separable Subassemblies |
US11/934,173 Active 2025-03-18 US7829214B2 (en) | 2003-11-25 | 2007-11-02 | Information handling system including battery assembly having multiple separable subassemblies |
US11/934,193 Abandoned US20080057354A1 (en) | 2003-11-25 | 2007-11-02 | Information Handling System Including Battery Assembly Having Multiple Separable Subassemblies |
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US11/627,782 Active 2027-02-12 US7962420B2 (en) | 2003-11-25 | 2007-01-26 | Information handling system including battery assembly having multiple separable subassemblies |
US11/934,137 Abandoned US20080052899A1 (en) | 2003-11-25 | 2007-11-02 | Information Handling System Including Battery Assembly Having Multiple Separable Subassemblies |
US11/934,173 Active 2025-03-18 US7829214B2 (en) | 2003-11-25 | 2007-11-02 | Information handling system including battery assembly having multiple separable subassemblies |
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US20050112457A1 (en) * | 2003-11-25 | 2005-05-26 | Dell Products L.P. | Information handling system including battery assembly having multiple separable subassemblies |
US7378819B2 (en) * | 2005-01-13 | 2008-05-27 | Dell Products Lp | Systems and methods for regulating pulsed pre-charge current in a battery system |
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Also Published As
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US20080057391A1 (en) | 2008-03-06 |
US20050112457A1 (en) | 2005-05-26 |
US7829214B2 (en) | 2010-11-09 |
US7962420B2 (en) | 2011-06-14 |
US20080155811A1 (en) | 2008-07-03 |
US20080052899A1 (en) | 2008-03-06 |
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